The present invention relates generally to metal building structures: Specifically to the retro-fitting of new roof and/or wall panels directly over existing fluted or ribbed roof and wall panels.
1. Prior Art
There is no prior art to be found directly related toward addressing the several problems in retro-fitting of new roof or wall panels for the specialty metal buildings field.
This field specifically refers to lightweight steel structures and particularly to the ribbed panels of roof and wails. The panels are generally of steel and noted for their series of parallel, alternating, formed, ribs and valleys to stiffen the thin materials to resist horizontal and vertical applied loads.
2. Description of the Prior Art
1. Simpson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,534,148, Aug. 13, 1985, discloses a system of light gauge metal channels forming a series of graduating heights of stanchions above a flat roofed structure to achieve an elevated pitched angle of new roof to facilitate drainage, with no relevance to the present invention's purpose or physical shape.
2. Carsons, U.S. Pat. No. 1,396,727, Nov. 15, 1921, discloses a patent for pre-formed running boards for automobiles, again, still further from any relevance to the present invention.
3. Fork, U.S. Pat. No. 3,721,051, Oct. 18, 1967, Forks disclosure is limited to creating hollow raceways for imbedded conduit or wire in a poured concrete floor system. No conceivable modification could suffice for the purpose of the present invention.
4. Folley, U.S. Pat. No. 3,820,295, Sep. 11, 1972, discloses a system for use as a stiffener for end laps and splices of metal wall and roof panels to add support to floor deck systems and enable longer spans of roof and wall sheets. It is not of any similar nature to the applicants invention and totally impractical for use for replacement of new roof or wall panels over existing ribbed panels. There is no sign of intent of use other than as a stiffener.
5. Murphy, U.S. Pat. No. 3,634,984, Feb. 12, 1970, discloses only the forming of short pieces of metal to fit the wall corrugations at the parapet coping flashing. It can be readily seen that this could not be modified into a subpurlin structural member. Its purpose is as a bird block to close off the open flutes. Such function is now accomplished by pre-formed, foam neoprene sponge closures.
6. Virgil Morton, U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,967, Jan. 23, 1990, discloses a system which acts as a fixed shear resistance element for floors or poured lightweight concrete roofs which is rigidly welded or bolted to the underlying support beam. Both ends of the fluted deck butt against the shear angle and are welded to the top and bottom flange as in his FIG. 10, sheet 3. This drawing clearly shows the intent, the multiple welds and the rigidity it produces, all of which require a heavy steel section which, in itself disqualifies it from use as applicants invention is intended.
The Morton patent configuration, welded attachment, weight of materials, and sole intent of rigidity render it totally unuseable for the purpose of the present invention. Further, Morton shows no conception of replacement of roof and wall panels over existing materials nor is his invention relative in any manner to the huge field of pre-engineered, prefabricated, lightweight, metal buildings.
From the reference art in total and the Morton patent in particular, applicant has found nothing of relevance to the intention of present application. Nothing has been developed to address the specific critical needs which are clarified in the following descriptions.
Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a product and means to the metal building industry to enable retro fitting of new roof or wall panels over existing roof or wall panels without the necessity of removal of existing panels. Such product and means to also meet criteria demanded by building codes.
A metal building is a lightweight structure consisting of vertical steel columns, steel rafter beams bolted to the vertical columns and generally spaced from 20 to 30 feet apart. The rafter beams are generally sloped to provide positive drainage.
Spanning the columns and rafter beams at sidewalls and roof are a series of light gauge sub-structural "z" or "c" sections bolted to the columns and rafter beams. These are generally on 4' to 5' spacing and run perpendicular to the columns and rafter beams, commonly known in the trade as purlins for roof support and girts for sidewall support.
Covering the structural system are ribbed, fluted or profiled panels with alternating higher ribs and flat valleys or pans generally with high rib being 6" to 24" on center and valleys being 4" to 18" across the flat and of generally 26 gauge or 24 gauge sheet metal, creating a structural diaphragm when fastened to the substructural system.
Such higher rib surface's lie substantially in an upper plane and the bottom valley or pan surfaces lie substantially in a lower plane spaced apart from the upper plane. The alternating top and bottom surfaces are interconnected by a series of webs extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the formed panel diaphragm.
There are an infinite variety of shapes of such configurations commercially available. For simple reference refer to the top surface as being the top plane of the higher rib and base surface as being the lower plane of the low rib. The web being the connecting form of the two.
The panels are generally attached to the aforesaid sub-structural members with generally a series of threaded screws, generally 12" or less on center for the entire building length. Standing seam type roofing is attached to the sub-structural members by means of clips mounted on the sub-structural members.
The design of metal building structures optimizes minimum weight materials to work in unison in meeting the building code requirements for wind, snow, ice and live loading for the many geographical location's exposure to the elements.
In achieving that criteria, each component is engineered to meet the requirements of the codes.
In re-roofing of such structures, extreme attention is given to limiting imposition of further dead loads on the original structural design and yet to resist the full wind uplift requirements of multiple building codes.
Additionally, the original structural design relies on the rotation or flexural movement of the Z shaped substructural purlins to accommodate the thermal expansion and contraction of the metal roof panels and the sheer action of the roof panel diaphragm in gusting wind conditions.
Applicants invention takes each of these concerns into full consideration and acts to duplicate and mimic those concerns as they were designed and approved in the original structure.
Accordingly, the reader or those skilled in the art will readily see the many advantages the present invention brings to the retrofitting of roof and walls of metal buildings.